


Outlaw Queen Oneshots

by suseagull04



Series: Faith and Trust: Better than Pixie Dust [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Inspired by Outlaw Queen Week 2019 (Once Upon a Time)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2020-03-27 14:41:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19014985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/suseagull04/pseuds/suseagull04
Summary: This contains Outlaw Queen oneshots from my established verses. Ratings will vary.





	1. Faith and Trust Disney Oneshot

A/N This is a Faith and Trust flash forward, and takes place right after Robin and Regina graduate. So there will be some spoilers for things that haven’t happened in the main story yet, but they’ll happen soon!

“Henry, Roland, are you ready to go?” Regina called up the steps. For their graduation and engagement gift, Mary Margaret and David had pooled resources with Cora, now demon-free, to give her daughter, Robin, Henry and Roland a four-day vacation to Disney World, which would last almost a week due to the time it would take to drive there. After conferring with the other adults in the boys’ lives, who believed that while Robin and Regina were still young, they were responsible enough to handle this trip, and indeed, they would need the practice, as they had started the adoption process not long ago, the plan was agreed-upon, the trip arranged, and now, the day of their departure had finally arrived. The only problem was, they had to make their way out the door on time, which was proving to be a challenge. 

“Almost!” Henry replied, running down the steps to meet her, dragging a sleepy Roland with him. 

Regina frowned. She had encountered a tired Roland enough over the years to know that it would be easiest to just carry him to the car, but as a seven-year-old, he was too big now for her to carry. “Robin, can you give us a hand please? We have a tired little Jedi knight who needs some help getting to the car.”

“Of course,” Robin said, appearing in the doorway. He scooped Roland up in his arms and carried him to the car, Henry running excitedly behind him.

Several hours later, both boys were awake and to entertain them, Regina suggested that they should watch one of the many movies they had brought for the trip. They had borrowed David’s car for the trip, which had a DVD player for the long ride with two restless boys. 

“I want to watch The Force Awakens!” Henry exclaimed, shoving the DVD towards Regina so she could put it in the DVD player.

“No!” Roland protested, trying to snatch the DVD out of his brother’s hand. “I want to watch Oliver and Company!”

“It’s a really long ride,” Henry told him, with all the wisdom of an older brother, “We’ll have time to watch both, and I think The Force Awakens should be first!”

“Nuh uh, Oliver and Company is better!” Roland insisted.

Robin quickly glanced over at Regina before returning his attention to the road, and she could tell from his expression alone that he wanted her to end the boys’ argument as soon as possible. While they were driving steadily on I-95, traffic was thick, and Regina knew Robin needed as few distractions as possible to get them to Orlando safely.

She turned in her seat to face the brothers. “Boys, agree on a movie right now, or there will no movies for either of you for the rest of the day. Henry, I think you should let Roland watch whatever he wants to watch now, and you can watch what you want later. You know your brother will probably fall asleep right after the movie’s over, so you can watch whatever you want then.”

Both boys looked chagrined. “Okay,” they agreed sullenly. Roland handed her Oliver and Company, and as the opening credits began to play, Regina and Roland began singing along to the first song.

“Crisis averted, thank you for that, sweetheart,” Robin said quietly, taking his hand off the wheel for a moment to squeeze hers.

“No problem, anytime.” Regina answered. 

******** 

They had left Storybrooke at around six a.m., so by the time they arrived at the hotel it was long past Henry and Roland’s bedtime. 

Over the years, the four of them had had many sleepovers, so Regina and Robin knew that Roland’s bedtime routine would take awhile, so they started right after they brought the luggage into their hotel.

“Roland, it’s time to get a bath,” Regina said, trying to usher the boy to the bathroom.

“No! I don’t want to take a bath! I want to look at what rides I want to go on and characters I want to meet at Magic Kingdom tomorrow! It’s my first time, so I want to make sure it’s perfect!” Roland insisted.

“Roland, honey,” Regina said, trying her hardest to be patient with him, which was increasingly difficult after the long ride. “It’s the first time any of us has been to Disney World, so I think we should all get to decide what we do, don’t you?”

“Exactly- if it happens after I go to bed, I won’t get to decide what happens!”

“Roland,” Robin reasoned, “Your brother’s going to bed now too. And Regina and I have already made a list of rides and activities we think you both will enjoy. So you can both decide tomorrow what we do first.”

“Fine, but only if we can play some too,” Roland huffed, following Regina into the bathroom.

Once Regina had finally gotten Roland into the tub, a whole new process began. Robin and Regina had made the mistake of packing some of Roland’s bath toys that traveled with him wherever he went. When he had brought them from Granny’s, where he and Henry had spent the night two nights previously, Regina hadn’t been able to say no to adding them to the plethora of items that would already be in the car, Roland’s dimples the irresistible force that had made her give in.

“Vroom!” Roland cried, water flying as the boat he was holding was sent from one end of the tub to the other. He cheered. “The crocodile is gone and Captain Hook and Mr. Smee save the day!”

At the sound of a throat clearing, Regina turned to find Robin smiling down at them. “Don’t you love how we all think that the villains are actually the heroes, even the boys?”

Regina smiled and nodded, carefully standing, avoiding the puddles, to give him a quick kiss. “Gee, I wonder where they get that idea from,” she teased. It was no secret to anyone that the Evil Queen and Robin Hood were two of Robin and Regina’s favorite Disney characters, so their friends had long ago dubbed them Outlaw Queen.

“What can I say, they clearly have learned to have very good taste,” Robin smirked. 

Regina turned her attention back to Roland. “Okay little pirate, time to get out and read a bedtime story.”

“No! I want to play more! Please?” Roland begged.

Regina saw a familiar look enter Robin’s eyes as he looked down at the youngest of the brothers. “Roland, I think Regina’s getting tired, so if you don’t get in your pajamas soon, she won’t be able to read you a bedtime story. Would you like me to read you one instead?”

“No, Gina reads stories the best!” Roland protested. He immediately climbed out of the tub, and Regina, shooting Robin a grateful smile, wrapped a towel around him.

A half hour later, Regina collapsed on the pullout couch next to Robin. “I had to read him three bedtime stories before he finally fell asleep. What did he eat that gave him so much energy?”

“Chips or that drink from Zaxby’s?” Robin suggested, pulling her close and kissing the top of her head.

Regina groaned, cuddling as close as she could to her fiancé. “The drink, that was it. We should remember this this week and in the future, so we make sure it never happens again.”

“All right, we will,” Robin agreed.

They were so comfortable on the couch that before she knew it, Regina’s eyes were closing. She heard Robin whisper a soft, “Good night, querida,” as she fell into a deep sleep.

********

The next morning, Robin and Regina were woken bright and early by two very excited brothers. 

“Can we go to Disney World now? Pretty please?” Roland pleaded, trying to jump on top of where they were lying side by side on the couch, Regina wrapped in Robin’s arms.

Henry, still excited but always mature beyond his years, pulled Roland off. “They get it, they’re awake, now let’s go get ready!” He ushered Roland out of the room, but not before the couple sent thankful smiles his way.

Robin’s grip on Regina tightened. “Let’s cuddle for five more minutes, it’ll take much longer than that for the boys to get ready.”

“Which is why we need to help them,” Regina reminded him. “And we need to make sure we have everything ready- sunscreen, tickets, money, the list of what we want to do…”

“All right, all right, you win, we’ll get up,” Robin groaned, his arm moving from Regina’s waist to her shoulders and gently pushing her so she got off of the couch. 

An hour later, they were entering the most magical place on Earth. Roland and Henry’s eyes were wide with wonder, and Regina had to admit that she was amazed as well. They were on Main Street USA, and Cinderella Castle stood before them in all its glory. Most people were walking toward the castle, but Robin steered Regina, Henry, and Roland off to the left, toward Adventureland. 

“What are we doing?” Regina asked him. Most of the rides they wanted to start with were at the top of the park, in Fantasyland.

“Taking advantage of the best view in the park,” Robin told her.

“If you say so…” Regina skeptically replied, watching over her shoulder as hordes of guests flocked toward Cinderella Castle.

But as was usually the case, Robin was right: the view just off of Main Street USA was the best vantage point by far from which to view the iconic castle. A lush verdant lawn spanned the distance between the castle and the path they were traversing, which set the castle against the most beautiful backdrop Regina could have ever imagined in a theme park.

“You were right,” she admitted, kissing him. “Definitely worth the detour.”

“Can we take a picture or whatever it is we’re doing here so we can get on rides soon please?” Henry begged. 

They laughed simultaneously. “All right, all right,” Robin relented, letting go of Regina to pull the boys close. “How should we do these pictures?”

“I can take a picture of your family, if you’d like,” a woman behind them offered. “That way, you can all be in the picture.”

Robin and Regina readily agreed. After handing the woman her phone, Regina pulled Henry closer to her, while Robin picked Roland up, settling him on his hip. They all smiled at the camera, as the woman counted down, they all shouted, “MAGIC KINGDOM!”

********

After a day of magic and wonder beyond their wildest dreams where they rode rides and met so many characters, Robin and Regina returned to their hotel room with two exhausted boys in tow. The bedtime routine that night, thanks to Regina and Robin’s foresight in not allowing the boys to have any sugar past a certain time, went much more smoothly than the night before. After one story and a round of kisses to each boy’s forehead, both brothers were fast asleep, with Robin and Regina soon following them into slumber, arms wrapped around each other.

Regina woke slowly to a small voice whispering, “Mama, Mama, wake up!”

She opened her eyes to see two orbs that were so dark she could barely distinguish them from the darkness of night. “Roland? What’s wrong, munchkin?”

She could just make out his frightened face. “Mama, there’s a monster in the closet!” he whispered frantically. 

She got up, trying not to wake Robin, whose arm was draped over her, and took Roland’s hand in hers. He was somewhat small for his age, so her hand still dwarfed his, a fact she was thankful for. He had grown up so fast that she welcomed any signs that the three-year-old boy she had met four years ago still lived on inside him.

She followed him to the boys’ room, where she could hear the soft banging that had likely scared Roland. 

“Do you hear it? Do you hear the monster?!?” he asked, his eyes wide with fear.

“Roland, there’s no such thing as monsters,” Henry’s groggy voice chimed in from across the room. “Go back to sleep.”

Roland’s gaze flickered from Henry back to her, unsure of whether to believe his brother or not. “Mama, can you still look? Please?”

“Of course,” Regina soothed him, her fingers sifting through his dark curls. She opened the closet as Roland shrank away from it.

She immediately saw the source of the problem. A drying rack that the hotel left for guests to dry bathing suits on was leaning against the closet door, making it impossible for her to open it completely. She reached one hand in to pull the drying rack away from the closet door, then laid it on the ground. 

Regina turned back to Roland. “See, nothing to be afraid of. It was just the drying rack.”

His face still showed traces of apprehension. “Can- can I come sleep with you?”

She gave him a warm smile. “Of course, you can.”

“Baby,” she heard Henry mutter from his bed.

Her arm wrapped around Roland’s shoulders. “Henry, be nice to your brother. Everyone’s scared of something, and Roland just so happens to be afraid of a noise he heard in the closet tonight.”

Her admonishment was met with a sleepy grunt as the elder of the two boys rolled over and went back to sleep. She looked down at Roland. “Do you still want to sleep with us?” she whispered.

He hesitated for a moment, then nodded. He followed her back to their room, then climbed into bed with her.

“Good night, Roland,” she whispered, still trying to make sure they didn’t wake Robin.

As she drifted off to sleep, she could have sworn she heard Roland whisper, “Good night, Mama.”

********

When Regina woke up, her arms were empty. Roland must’ve woken before her and gone back to his and Henry’s room. 

Suddenly, she remembered. Last night, for the first time, he had called her “Mama.” At the time, she had still been too tired to notice the change, but the event revealed its significance in the light of day. Her heart melted at the knowledge that he had seen her as his mother, but at the same time, she didn’t want him to get too attached- they were just starting the adoption process for the boys, and the social worker had told them not to tell the brothers anything until all papers had been signed and everything was finalized.

She turned in Robin’s arms and kissed him awake. “Guess what!” she said, her voice both a whisper and an excited shout in his ear.

His eyes opened as he leaned in to kiss her. “What?”

“I don’t know if you heard everything that happened last night, but Roland called me ‘Mama!’ Which I’m a little apprehensive about, I’ll admit, since the social worker told us not to tell them anything… but still!” she told him, grinning from ear to ear.

Robin’s answering smile was as radiant as her own. “That’s wonderful! And before we know it, the boys will likely be ours- so this is just a step in that direction, a confirmation that this is right, that they’re meant to be our sons.”

She hummed in agreement, kissing him. “That day can’t come soon enough.”

And with that glorious thought in their minds, they got up and got ready to continue their adventure in the place where dreams come true, their own dreams almost a reality.

A/N: This chapter contains prompt 177, prompt 160, prompt 5, prompt 199, prompt 58, prompt 76, prompt 115, prompt 134, and prompt 8 for OQ Prompt Party 2019. Hope you enjoyed reading this, and please leave a review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Faith and Trust flash forward was inspired by @willow1411's absolutely stunning manip, found here: https://twitter.com/willow1411/status/1146088704483745794 for Inspired by OQ 2019. Enjoy!

Regina woke to the sound of girls moving around her. Mary Margaret and David, knowing that their home had been Regina’s home away from home as she grew up, had been gracious enough to open the house to them for Regina’s bachelorette party. 

All three of her bridesmaids had been in charge of the planning, which had made Regina nervous at first, given Alice’s proclivity for concocting wild schemes. However, she knew she had designated the trio as her bridesmaids for a reason, and she hadn’t been disappointed. 

Between her three friends, they had collaborated to plan a day at the beach that included lots of fun in the sun. Later, they had gone out to dinner, where they had surprised her with a slideshow of memories shared with each of them as well as Robin. By the end, Regina was grinning from ear to ear, 

After that, the night consisted of laughter, talking, and making more memories with some of her favorite people. There were several points throughout the celebration that she wanted to text Robin, just to see how his bachelor party was going and tell him all about her day, but each time she had taken out her phone, Alice had spotted what she was doing and snatched her phone away, finally confiscating it for the night after she caught Regina holding it for the fifth time, claiming that she would have Robin all to herself the following night. With a sheepish grin, the bride-to-be had handed her phone over, and focused all of her attention on her friends. 

Now, they were busy getting ready for her big day. Her bridesmaids had collaborated to make a playlist for the morning, and had used the name that they always used when referring to Robin and Regina as a couple, Outlaw Queen, to come up with a playlist that fit the couple perfectly. 

Regina spent the morning humming and singing along to her heart’s content, which frustrated Mary Margaret, who as always was helping her get ready by doing her makeup.

“Hold still!” the woman who had always been her second mother exclaimed after Regina’s swaying caused her to use eyeliner on her temple instead of her eye. “You’ll never be ready for Robin in time if you keep doing that. And I know you want to see him as soon as possible, right?”

That comment immediately made Regina stop swaying in her chair and remain stationary until Mary Margaret declared that she was ready to put on her dress. 

But before putting on her dress, Regina looked at it one final time, marveling once again at how perfect it was. She had lost weight in the almost five years since she had met Robin, partly due to his encouragement to take care of her body and health, so instead of the ball gown she had once imagined that she would wear at her wedding, the dress she had chosen was more form-fitting, drawing attention to her figure in ways that she had never thought she would want a dress to show. Unlike many wedding dresses, hers had very little lace, and only a few sparkles that she thought made the dress shine without being too elaborate. 

At last, she was ready. She looked at her bridesmaids, all clothed in sky blue, a color both she and Robin loved. They met her mother on the campus where she and Robin had met, where they were going to take pictures, and as she stepped out of the car, Regina couldn’t help noticing the clouds hanging overhead.

“Do you think it’s going to rain?” she asked her mother fretfully. Cora was notorious for checking the weather at every available opportunity, so if anyone would know the answer to her question, she knew it would be Storybrooke’s mayor.

“Not until tonight- and even if it does rain before then, don’t worry. With the exception of pictures, it won’t affect your plans, which is exactly why you planned this wedding the way you did, remember?” Cora reminded her.

Regina smiled gratefully. “Thanks.” Almost four years later, she still couldn’t believe the changes that had occurred in her mother. While she still worried more than Regina thought was necessary, she had helped   
Regina have more opportunities to gain her independence and learn important life skills, so that Regina was not only confident that she could succeed on her own, but had gained the life experience to support that belief. 

After they had taken pictures of Regina with her mother, Mary Margaret and Emma, and the rest of her bridesmaids, it was finally time to travel to the ceremony. She and Robin had chosen to have it at their church, and because Regina had never loved most flowers, she had enlisted her bridesmaids’ help to make homemade paper flowers from copies of her favorite parts from her favorite books. Bouquets of these flowers lined the aisle, adorned the stage, and were in the hands of each bridesmaid as well as the bride. 

As the processional began to play, each bridesmaid- Belle, Alice, and Emma- walked down the aisle. Before she started walking, Henry, who was walking her down the aisle, held up Regina’s phone, snapped a picture of Robin, and showed it to Regina, as they had agreed in one of the many conversations they had had about this day. Robin had wanted her to be patient and see him for the first time at the end of the aisle, but she hated the idea that he would get to see her long before she saw him, so she had come up with this compromise, which he agreed to. 

Looking at the picture, a slow smile spread on Regina’s face. Her soon-to-be husband was dressed in a blue suit and tie that matched his eyes perfectly. His smile, though, was what truly held her attention. It was filled with so much joy and love that it reached his eyes, and she knew that she had made the right decision all those years ago when she decided to take a chance on her feelings for him.

Finally, it was her turn to traverse the distance between her and her soon-to-be husband. Henry had insisted on not being a ringbearer, claiming that he was too old for that role. So instead, Roland was their only ringbearer, and his older brother had the honor of walking with Regina down the aisle. 

As Roland arrived at the point when Regina knew she needed to start walking, Henry turned to her with a knowing smile. “Are you ready?”

Regina smiled back, remembering how Henry had wanted her and Robin to have this happy ending from the day he had first met them, and nodded. Together they started walking. The soft notes of Canon in D Major filled the air as Regina walked past her family and friends, her focus solely on the man that she could just barely see at the end of the aisle. 

When they finally reached the altar (not soon enough for Regina’s liking), Henry playfully bowed to Robin and stepped aside, standing next to Robin’s groomsmen.

Robin stepped forward and took her hand in his. He helped her up the steps to where the newly ordained Tuck was going to perform the ceremony that would bind them together forever. 

Regina barely paid attention to the ceremony, too focused on staring into Robin’s eyes to notice their surroundings. However, when it was time for them to recite their vows, she quickly snapped back to the present moment, eager to hear Robin’s vows to her and to read hers to him. 

She began hers first. “Robin, from the moment we met, you had me falling for you.” 

He chuckled softly, likely remembering that day. She smiled, then continued, looking into his eyes as she vowed, “I knew from that day that I didn’t want to live a single moment without you in my life. Your kindness and willingness to listen are gifts I’ll treasure forever, and i promise to always return the favor, helping you when you need it, and listening when you have something you want to say. The day we met, you used the meaning of my name to your advantage, and while I’ve never liked that my name means ‘queen,’ as long as I’m the queen of your heart I don’t mind, because you’re the outlaw who stole my heart years ago and didn’t let it go, even for a moment. I love you, Robin Locksley, and I always will.”

She couldn’t believe it- she could’ve sworn that she saw tears in his eyes. She let go of his hand for a second, reached out, and touched his cheek, discovering that she had been correct. 

After she gently wiped away the tears he had shed, he began his vows. “Regina, from the second we met, I felt that we had an immediate connection. I literally swept you off your feet that day, but from that moment on, you’ve done that to me more times than I can count. You have the most resilient heart of anyone I’ve ever met, and I know that as we embark on this new journey together, you will be the strength behind our marriage in ways you’ll never believe, but I promise to do everything I can to fill your days with joy. I love you, sweetheart.”

The need to kiss him was so irresistible that she leaned in, but he stopped her with a finger to her lips. She turned to Tuck, who smiled. “Do you, Regina Mills, take Robin Locksley as your husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, from this day forward?”

Her gaze never shifted from Robin’s as she vowed, “I do.”

"And do you, Robin Locksley, take Regina Mills as your wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, from this day forward?”

“I do,” he responded, his voice ringing out over the church.

“Then I now pronounce you husband and wife. Robin, you may kiss your bride.”

His arms surrounded her as he swept her off her feet. She clung to him, her lips fusing to his as if they would never part- and from that day, they never would.

The reception was filled with good food, music and laughter as Robin and Regina celebrated with their friends and family. Hours of dancing later, it was time for them to leave to start their new life together. Regina saw Robin slip away to change into more comfortable clothes as she continued dancing with friends. He emerged in black pants and a black sleeveless shirt. Walking up to her, he took her hand. “Ready for a new adventure?”

She smiled at his words, a reminder of the day he had proposed to her. “With you? Always.” 

Once everyone had been informed that they were leaving, the guests all lined up with bubbles. Regina was glad they had chosen that over sparklers, because she could see a sheet of rain pouring down outside. 

As she and Robin stepped outside, the rain immediately soaked through her dress. She could feel her hair, as wet as it would be if she had just stepped out of the shower, hanging down her back, the updo coming undone as her wet hair forced countless bobby pins to fall out of her hair.

She tried to take a step, but slipped on the mud and fell, Robin breaking her fall as she felt her dress separate at the slit in back. She didn’t care though, as Robin was suddenly looking at her with nothing but desire in his eyes. As she leaned in to kiss him, she heard a camera flash, capturing this moment.

They got up and got in Robin’s waiting car, finally starting their new life as Mr. and Mrs. Locksley, which she knew would be their best adventure yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this, and let me know what you think!!


	3. The Fox and the Queen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This oneshot was inspired by outlawqueenbey's adorable doodle from Prompt Party 2019, found here: https://twitter.com/outlawqueenbey/status/1135229936006885376. Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

She misses him.  
Not the Wish Realm version of him- as far as she’s concerned, her other half can have him. Although it was wonderful to encounter a version of him again, to hear his voice, see his handsome face, she realized that ultimately, Robin of Locksley was meant for the Evil Queen.  
But Regina misses her Robin. The way he would brush her hair back behind her ear with his fingers just before he kissed her. The soft way he would call her “milady” that never failed to melt her heart, even during the missing year. And perhaps most of all (though she’ll deny it), she misses the way he could read her like no one else, not even her baby boy who is a child no longer.  
Now that Drizella brought her out of the curse, although Regina keeps some of Roni’s distinctive features to keep up appearances (only in the form of those awful jeans that Henry’s always been so fond of and keeping the bar running), Regina can’t help reminiscing about all of these characteristics of Robin’s that she longs for. In a way, being under the curse was a blessing because although she felt that there was something missing, she couldn’t figure out what. Now that she knows, knows that her soulmate is lost to her forever, the ache in her heart never leaves. She imagines that he’s there with her, which is the worst feeling. She’ll imagine him lying next to her at night, his arm around her, then wake up to find it was only her imagination playing a cruel trick on her yet again.  
One day, Regina finds a fox sitting at the back door of Roni’s, and her thoughts immediately go to him- more specifically, to the animated cartoon made a decade before her arrival in the Land Without Magic that bears his name.  
The fox acts like it knows her, immediately coming up to her and brushing its head against her leg. Is it actually… nuzzling her? Regina knows it’s crazy- it is a fox, after all, a born predator- but it seems more domestic than any fox she ever thought she would come across.  
And to keep up appearances, because it would be just like her cursed persona to adopt a fox, Regina decides that it can stay- under strict guidelines, of course. After all, her mansion in Storybrooke was spotless, and if a ten-year-old boy can help keep it that way, to some extent, she has a right to expect the same from a fox who is living under her roof. Besides, there’s something about this fox that seems… domestic? Familiar? Both? She can’t decide, but she does know it’s worth giving the animal the chance for a trial run. If that doesn’t work out, she’ll simply send it back to the woods where it belongs.  
But she doesn’t think that’ll happen, because there’s a familiarity with this fox that she doesn’t understand. Either it knows her, or she should know it, judging by the way it’s trying to nuzzle her hand, and she can’t quite put her finger on why she would ever know a fox. So she takes it in until she can find answers.  
So the fox stays. And because she’s apparently a masochist, she dubs the fox Robin. He certainly follows her around like that annoying thief always did during the missing year, determined to get in her way despite his promise that he wouldn’t dream of it.  
But she lets him stay despite this inconvenience, because he’s someone for her to talk to, as crazy as that sounds. Now she can understand why Henry always wanted a dog growing up. Because through the difficulties of each day, as the town around them slowly wakes up from the curse they’ve all been put under, as she and Lucy plot ways for Henry and Jacinda to find each other, the fox is there for her to vent her feelings, somehow managing to communicate with her, reassure her that he’s there for her in the way only Robin ever was.  
And slowly, it dawns on her that Hades may have lied about the Olympian Crystal, that Robin may have turned into this surprisingly handsome fox in front of her. Because in addition to everything else, there’s a look in his eyes as he curls up next to her like she and the human Robin did in her office that day just before her sister masquerading as Marian ruined everything. That look makes her suspect that maybe, just maybe, the universe isn’t being cruel to her for once, that perhaps- just this once- there’s a chance she can still figure out how to have her happy ending after all.  
Happy ending. She considers that concept that those insufferable Charmings love so much. Normally, she isn’t a believer in a happy ending- at least not for her- but if she had to imagine one for herself, ideally it would include Robin by her side.  
At the same time, though, while she doesn’t desperately need Robin to be happy, especially after facing her evil half and then loving and accepting herself for who she is, she wants him. She wants walks home from getting ice cream with Roland between them (once they retrieve him from the Merry Men). She wants fireside picnics, both at the Merry Men’s camp and in her office (although she’ll never admit the former aloud- after all, she has a reputation to maintain). She wants to hear him call her milady, and tell him for the millionth time that he smells like forest. And at the end of the day, she wants that scent, pine and something distinctly Robin, to surround her as she falls asleep in his arms.  
When she and Lucy finally get Henry and Jacinda to kiss, but it doesn’t break the curse, and her heart is broken because it seems that her son is no longer the truest believer, no longer believes in fairy tales that he grew up with, that he is a crucial and irrevocable part of, she comes home and just sits on the couch and lets her guard down to allow a few tears to flow freely. She wants her little boy back- or at least, a more mature version of him. Because while she loves her granddaughter, and couldn’t be more thankful to have her through all of this mess, with covens and curses blocking their path left and right, she needs at least one of the two people she loves most by her side, in their human form, to comfort her and give her guidance on how to make it through this, to defeat these villains and get her family back.  
And it seems that she might get a small piece of her wish as Robin leaps onto the couch and curls up beside her, standing on his hind legs like a dog to look deep into her eyes, his own somehow conveying the message that he is here for her, that he’ll never leave. And a minute later, he proves that by curling up by her side, fitting against her so perfectly that even in this form, she is reminded that he is made for her, and she him. But that thought is ludicrous, he’s a fox. He can’t possibly have human thoughts and emotions.  
And yet, after that day, the longing for him grows so intense that she swallows her pride and goes to see the imp. She would try to find a solution on her own, but given that this curse has Drizella’s desires woven through it, not her own, her vault didn’t get transferred from Storybrooke, where it stayed after Henry needed her in Ella’s birthplace, to Hyperion Heights. So although she has her suspicions about how to free Robin from his animalistic form, she can’t act on them without Rumple’s cooperation.  
As she swallows her pride and opens the door to the station, Rumple- Weaver, as he’s known here- turns toward her, “How can I help you?” he asks, keeping to his Hyperion Heights persona and appearing much nicer than she knows him to be. When he sees Robin, he sternly reminds her, “No animals unless they’re in need of help or they’re service animals, dearie, you know that.”  
She nods. “I know. And he does need your help.”  
He raises his eyebrows. “Oh? And how, pray tell, does your pet need my help?”  
She takes a deep breath, reminding herself not to give in to her more evil impulses. If it wasn’t for Henry’s and Robin’s influences, she would’ve hurled a fireball at the man who was once her teacher long ago. “Can we talk somewhere? In private?”  
He nods curtly, and leads them to a back room that has an examining table. While she suspects that the room is usually used for inspecting evidence, it will serve just as well for this.  
Robin immediately hops up on the table as Rumple steps closer. “Now, what do we have here?”  
“I think it’s Robin,” Regina confided, her voice barely a whisper so as not to alert other members of the staff to their unusual activities. “Hades must have lied about the Olympian Crystal, and it turned Robin into a fox instead of obliterating him. There’s this… magic, this aura around him that I can’t help thinking means something.”  
“Are you sure?” her former mentor asks. “Or have you been around the Charmings for too long and let hope get the better of you?”  
“I know what I feel,” she insists, “and I know that if Robin came back to me somehow, this is it.”  
“Well, as it so happens, you are correct,” Rumple declares.  
Regina’s heart feels like it’s going to leap out of her chest at his words. “So?” she demands swiftly. “Can you break whatever this is? Can he be human again?”  
“All magic comes with a price, dearie, you know that,” he admonishes.  
“Name it.” she says curtly, her temper flaring at his condescending ways.  
“My information will cost you a promise of no interference. Once our deal is complete, you’ll not interfere with my plans and I won’t interfere with yours. The price of the magic itself- well, dearie, you know as well as I that the price likely won’t reveal itself until the magic is complete.”  
“Done,” she agrees. “Now, what do you know?”  
“To return Robin of Locksley- Robin Hood, if you will- to the form you hold most dear, you must seek a rare incantation. This incantation will return him to the last form he was in.”  
“Where do I find it?” she demands. “Tell me, Rumple!”  
“I don’t know that, dearie. But I suspect that a certain magical individual in Hyperion Heights does. Seek him, and you will find your answers.”  
“All right,” she replies. “And- thank you.”  
With that, she and the fox that she hopes is Robin left the station, their destination determined by Gold’s clue.  
I suspect that a certain magical individual in Hyperion Heights does. Seek him… Regina shakes her head. Why hadn’t Rumple just told her to ask Samdi about the incantation? The man always speaks in riddles, and it irks her to no end sometimes. He could have just spoken plainly. But then again, that would’ve made her work easier, and with the exception of the bookworm- maybe even including the bookworm, judging by the number of times she had sought refuge on the pirate’s vessel- Rumplestiltskin is never amenable to making someone’s life easier unless it is his own or it benefits him in some way.  
Well, the only benefit he would’ve gotten out of this is if he witnessed the drama that’s about to unfold a small voice in her head reminded her. She shared a past with the sorcerer- or rather, the Evil Queen did. What they once had could not be called romance, but their interactions had certainly been filled with a passion she had never had before, and didn’t have again until Robin came into her life.  
Looking down at the fox by her side, Regina tries desperately not to think about those interactions. The thief certainly stole her heart, both in Storybrooke and the Enchanted Forest, and she thinks back with fondness to their verbal sparring during the missing year. His ability to keep up with her, match every insult she threw at him with a sarcastic remark of his own, and how after one such conversation, she had finally given in to what she wanted, what she knew she needed, and kissed him, their arms locking around each other as she strived to bring him as close to her as possible.  
Lost in some of her favorite memories, Regina almost misses Samdi’s, only realizing it when Robin steps in front of her, blocking her path. She enters, and finds him doing such a normal thing, filling a mug with coffee, that she almost laughs. To see this undoubtedly powerful sorcerer doing something so human is so unusual that she forgets for a moment why she’s there, only paying attention to something other than her mirth when he speaks.  
“The Evil Queen. Or should I say Regina? To what do I owe the pleasure?”  
“I believe you have something I want,” she begins. “Ever heard of an incantation that will return people and things to a form they were in previously?”  
“Ah, yes,” the witch doctor confirms. “But for the incantation, I want to know; who or what is it that you want to revert so desperately?”  
She gulps. Telling Rumple the situation was easy. He has met her archer, and while the Evil Queen had tried to use him romantically, there had never been a spark between them. What had transpired between her and Facilier, however, was built on at least a little more than that, though it could never compare to what she had- has, she reminds herself sternly, daring to take a little of the Charmings’ favorite tool, hope, for herself- with Robin. “Just someone close to me.”  
“Ah, I see,” he mused, reading between the lines like she knew he would. “And tell me, would this person want to be reverted to their original form?”  
That he would dare suggest that Robin wouldn’t want to return to her makes Regina’s temper flare, and she strives to keep it in check...  
But she doesn’t succeed. After all, how often is she supposed to deal with losing everything she wants? Because it seems that the universe’s latest trick, giving her hope that it could easily snatch away from her in the blink of an eye, seems too cruel, even for the woman who was once the Evil Queen.  
“How dare you,” she replies in as menacing a tone as she can muster, the piece of the Evil Queen in her coming out to play in this moment. The nerve he has to even question if Robin would want to return to her is unquestionable, unthinkable, the hope for it the only thing holding her together at the moment. If he never wants to be human again, to be with her, then why would he return to her? Unless he knows that she can and will help him, and has taken advantage of her vulnerability for him and everything (and everyone) related to him. But that isn’t the Robin she knows, the thief who stole from the rich to give to the poor, so she refuses to consider the possibility until she is proven otherwise.  
“It’s a valid question,” he defends himself, holding up his hands in surrender. “After all, we both are well aware that what others want for us isn’t always what we want for ourselves.”  
The flickers of a fireball that she manages to conjure die at his words and she crosses her arms. “True. But I know that that isn’t the case here.” It can’t be. Not when he will want to return to his son and daughter, return to her, and help her battle Gothel in any way he can.  
Facilier smirks. “We shall see. Who is this person to you? If he or she is your soulmate, the incantation works differently than if the person is connected to you in any other way.”  
She nods curtly, starting to get tired of all of his games, his stalling. “How?”  
Because his soul is connected to yours, only you can perform the incantation. His soul is inextricably linked to yours; therefore, your soul will call to his and is the most likely to help him return to his human form.”  
“Okay, fine, that’s easy,” she snaps, “So, what do I need to do?”  
“Follow me,” he commands, and she does. Through the front of the house to a back sitting area with a fireplace that had a picture of a landscape on one wall. He walks over to the landscape, and she sees him fiddle with something on its side before the portion of the wall that contains the landscape swings inward. He beckons to her to follow him into whatever this secret room contains, and although she questions the wisdom of it, she obeys, knowing she will be one step closer to getting her Robin back.  
The room can be compared to a potion master’s lair, or a chemist’s secret laboratory. Oddly-shaped bottles on shelves line the room, and a table in the middle contains a cauldron that is bubbling- with what potion, she doesn’t know, and doubts she wants to. As Facilier walks forward, her attention is drawn to his destination: a bookcase that contains everything from more potion ingredients to rows and rows of books, likely books of incantations just like the one she’s seeking.  
He pulls out a book from the shelf, and brings it over to her. “Incantations like these are difficult because of the nature of the objects of the incantations. Humans and animals, particularly humans, are extremely complex creatures, after all.”  
“I already know that,” she snaps impatiently, “What do I need to know for this specific incantation?”  
“Focus all of your energy on this fox, your soulmate. But they can’t just be any thoughts of your soulmate. You must think only of the ways this man has changed your life for the better, and say the incantation written here.” He magically detaches the page at the binding and hands it to her.  
She glances down at it. It seems too easy- there had to be a catch. “And the price?”  
“Unknown to anyone who has not used this particular brand of magic. So you’ll have to find out for yourself.”  
She snorts. That is the least helpful answer she’s ever heard, and she’s lived in close proximity to the heroes for far too long, tolerating all of their hope speeches. And she has known Rumple, the master of mind games, for decades. Still… “Thank you. This means a lot.”  
‘Anytime, Your Majesty,” he replies, bowing before her. “I only hope that this opportunity to return your soulmate to his human form goes according to plan.”  
She glances at him curiously. It isn’t like Facilier to want a happy ending for anyone but himself. “You do?”  
He nods in confirmation. “If you can’t have something that works out well for you, none of the rest of us can. So you’re forging the path for all villains to find happiness.”  
“I already did,” she tells him, thinking of Henry, Ella, and Lucy. “I just… want the man I love with us. For my family to be complete.”  
He nods. “Then go. Save him.”  
And with that, she and Robin are off again. When they return home, Regina recites the incantation, her thoughts focused on how Robin completes her, making her better than she is by always having faith in her and showing her that it is possible for someone to see the good in her.  
There’s a flash so bright she has to close her eyes, and in that moment it feels like her soul is being ripped in two- which it likely is. The combination hits her so violently that she stumbles, not daring to open her eyes again to break her fall, afraid that she got her hopes up, that he isn’t there with her after all.  
But then arms wrap around her, protecting her from falling. A touch light as a feather on her forehead, a force caressing her arms, her cheek. She doesn’t dare to believe what she’s feeling until she hears a soft, “Milady.”  
She simultaneously opens her eyes to see his soft blue ones looking down at her and moves into his arms, As his forest scent surrounds her and she feels the light brush of his lips on the top of her head, she knows that whatever else comes, she and her thief will face it together. “I love you and I missed you,” she whispers, afraid not to tell him how she feels, lest he be ripped away from her again, tears coming to her eyes at the thought.  
“I know,” he tells her. “I love you, and I’m not going anywhere. Today is the start of our happy ending.”  
And as she fuses her lips to his, tasting and claiming him like she never has before, Regina realizes that it is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this- let me know what you think!


	4. Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This oneshot was inspired by robinlocksleys' video, which you can find here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VrLanFqWNk&feature=youtu.be

“You don’t even know? That’s so sad, Regina, love. You need love.” Tinkerbell said, leaning forward in her chair in her earnestness to get Regina to understand what she supposedly needed to be happy.

“You’re going to help me find another soulmate,” Regina stated indignantly, disbelievingly. Her heart was currently still residing in a tomb with Daniel’s body, preserved with the magic Rumple had taught her. It couldn’t possibly be resurrected and taught to love again; the one person it had ever loved in that way was gone, lost to her forever because of her mother’s cruelty and a brat of a princess’s inability to keep a secret.

“Of course!” she exclaimed. “All we need is a little bit of pixie dust. It’ll help you find him.”

Regina didn’t believe the fairy, not even a few days later when she came to her chambers, pixie dust in hand. In the blink of an eye, they were flying over the Enchanted Forest, trees appearing and vanishing from view.

Finally, they came to land just outside of a small tavern in the middle of Sherwood Forest. Tinkerbell led Regina over to a cluster of trees close to the tavern’s window, and pointed inside.

“That’s him. The man with the lion tattoo.”

After more of her insufferable pep talk that Regina’s heart longed to believe but her brain told her was the musings of a romantic fool, the fairy left Regina alone at the tavern door, despite her protests. She inched closer. Should she do it? Her heart was still crushed after the loss of Daniel, and Rumple’s teachings, full of the desire for vengeance and nothing but the cruelest methods for achieving one’s aims, had only served to further turn her into the monster her mother had been before she banished her to Wonderland. Was this the answer to turning her life around again?

Resolved, she opened the tavern door. His back was to her, but then he turned so that she could see his profile, including the lion tattoo, a silhouette of the fierce feline against a black shield, that rested on his right forearm. 

But then memories of Daniel came rushing back, and the crippling grief consumed her as she turned, letting the tavern door swing shut behind her. How could she be happy with anyone besides Daniel? He was her perfect match, the one who had always wiped her tears away after another one of her mother’s cruel scoldings or when she had used her magic against her. Having your own mother use cords to magically bind you, constricting your air and lungs and therefore making it difficult to breathe, was a truly terrifying experience, and only Daniel had truly wanted to help her. Her father, who had had the authority that Daniel lacked, never had the guts to stand up to her mother, but Daniel would have had the strength to do it, she knew he would have, had he ever truly been given the chance.

But Cora had ripped his heart out right in front of her, leaving Daniel, and Regina by extension, powerless to do anything but watch as she crushed his heart in the palm of her hand, and the next thing she knew, Regina was married to a man thrice her age, and a stepmother to someone who should have been her stepsister. A lump formed in her throat, and she slammed the door shut. 

She wasn’t ready for this. How could she be? Her heart still belonged to Daniel, whether Tinkerbell believed it or not, and while pixie dust supposedly said that maybe, just maybe, she could love again with the help of the man with the lion tattoo, she didn’t want to. Not now, and maybe not ever! And even if she did, what of the king? He would surely come after them, wanting to reclaim his queen, leaving them in danger, her and this man that she was supposedly destined to be with. While her mother, with the help of that brat Snow White, had sealed her fate long ago, it didn’t mean that she had to drag this man into her tempestuous life. While people claimed that she looked like Cora, she didn’t have her cruelty, and never would. 

She turned and fled, letting the door to the tavern slam shut behind her, hoping that she never saw the man with the lion tattoo again.

********

The second beginning happened decades later, just after she had had to sacrifice the boy she loved most in the world in order to save them all. The arrogant man, his blue eyes full of concern, offered to help her stand after an attack from flying monkeys.

The heroes insisted that he and his band of “Merry Men”- filthy, unwashed miscreants, the lot of them- come stay in her castle. For Henry’s sake, she agreed to it, but took every opportunity to show the thief that he wasn’t someone she trusted, not even when he attempted to stop her from putting a well-deserved sleeping curse on herself just before she met her half-sister. 

She would give him some credit though: unlike the rest of those insufferable heroes, he could match her wit better than anyone she had ever met. He always had a retort for every one of their verbal sparring matches, and while she would never admit it to anyone, least of all him, she needed those. They distracted her momentarily from the crushing grief of losing her son that consumed her thoughts daily. 

And then there was his son, who reminded her so much of Henry at his age. Those curls and dimples that, unlike his father’s, were impossible to resist drew her to him like a moth to a flame. He carried the monkey she had given him everywhere, making her feel even more affection for this little boy. The only problem was, wanting time with the son meant having to deal with the father... 

But eventually, they came to an arrangement. For despite the fact that they argued consistently, the sexual tension between them grew to the point that they could no longer deny it, loathe as she was to admit that there was anything between them. 

That’s how she found herself with her lips on his one day, one of his hands in her hair and the other at her waist. They had many such encounters over their year in the Enchanted Forest, but that all changed when the heroes declared they needed to return to Storybrooke to find Emma. While that also meant returning to her Henry, she was devastated because he wouldn’t know her, and she would lose the new family she had found in Robin and Roland.

On the night before the curse was cast, Robin assured her that they wouldn’t lose each other, and if they did, they would find one another again. And as he sealed that promise with a kiss, she finally saw it: the lion tattoo. The mark that had escaped her attention for the months she and Robin had known each other had come back to haunt her at this most inopportune moment: the final hour. Was it the beginnings of love that held them together, or was it fate, some magical force beyond their control?

She broke the kiss and ran, hearing him call after her as she once again decided not to tempt fate. Life had shown her that she wasn’t meant to have a happy ending, despite the brief moments of happiness she had had with this thief and his son.

********

The second time they met, he somehow wasn’t as insufferable. 

Though maybe that was because by that time, she had her son back. But that was torture in its own right; although the pirate had seen to it that Emma regained her memories, her son had not. Seeing Henry, but not being able to pull him into her arms, was a torture she doubted she had prepared herself for during the missing year. It was excruciating, being so close to him, but him not demonstrating the love that only he had shown her since Daniel’s death. 

The thief, however, somehow took her mind off of all of that. Their banter immediately gave her mind something to focus on that wasn’t the pain of having her son so close, but so far away from her in other ways.

But then, as he handed her a glass of whiskey, she saw it: the lion tattoo. She pulled her hand away and ran, refusing to believe for a second that fate would be cruel enough to have her second chance at love find her here, where her happiness was within reach but still so far away. 

Because in the many years since she had last seen that tattoo, she had known love again: the love of a little boy. Splashing and bubbles at bathtime, reading oftentimes several stories (never her own) as Henry fell asleep, Henry’s love had helped her become a less naive version of the girl she had been when she first saw that tattoo, and she doubted any love could be as reliable as Henry’s. After all, she was still the villain, and didn’t villains never get their happy endings?  
It was words from the woman who was once her stepdaughter, then her enemy, and finally her friend, that finally convinced Regina to seize what life had given her and do as Daniel had asked her to; love again. 

The woman who had once told her greatest secret was right: she felt things so deeply that she often wondered how her emotions could be that strong. Somehow, this thief had found his way into her heart, which she had believed to be an impenetrable fortress for all save Henry, 

She found him in the forest that night, and as he started to apologize for allowing Rumple to steal her heart when he was supposed to be guarding it, she cut his apology short by grabbing him by both sides of his jacket’s collar and pulling him in for a kiss. 

The moment their lips met, the undeniable connection that she had started to feel in the air between them solidified. With a start she broke the kiss, amazed at the intensity of the love she already felt for this thief. 

He didn’t let her pull away, though, closing the distance between them once more to fuse his lips to hers.

********

The next time they met, it was the day of his wedding to the love of his life and she, a fellow bandit whose wanted poster was side-by-side with his, was dealing with an annoying kid who was convinced that she was his mother. 

But despite all of these distractions, he couldn’t help noticing her. She was instantly ingrained in his head and on his heart, so much so that he almost considered not marrying Zelena, but as the wedding bells rang and he and his new wife exited the church, he saw her, and later, saw her die right before his eyes, creating a hole in his heart that he doubted would ever heal.

********

The final time they met, they were darker versions of their hero counterparts, and had such similar goals that they decided to work together before Regina finally took pity on him and sent him back to his realm.

Then, one day, Regina decided to give the Evil Queen some of her goodness, and sent her to the Wish Realm to find her happy ending…

That’s how she found herself standing outside of the tavern where she had seen him for the first time, too heartbroken from the loss of Daniel to risk a second chance with Robin.

Now, however, she was whole again, no longer consumed by thoughts of revenge. So, unlike so many years before, when she opened the door to the tavern, she walked inside. 

She found him immediately, sitting at the bar with John, Will, and Friar Tuck. The moment he saw her, though, he set down his drink, stood and walked over to her...

Months later, she was standing by one of the many windows set into the castle walls when she heard a bird flying toward the castle. It held a feather wrapped in a note. Unfolding the note, she read Robin’s words and smiled.

Yes, she was ready for a new adventure- the beginning of a life with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this, let me know what you think!!


	5. The Power of Soulmates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robin and Regina are set up on a blind date, but things go awry when disaster strikes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This oneshot, a Just Like Heaven AU, was written for RegalPixieDust's birthday!! Happy birthday Shay, I hope this is your best year yet!!

Regina walked briskly down the well-worn halls of the middle school where she taught, fading yellow paint surrounding her as she into the phone pressed to her ear. “Emma, I told you, while it may be Friday night, I have absolutely no time to go on a date tonight, especially a blind date. Not even offering to make it a double date with you and August would change my mind.”

“Oh come on, Regina, just forget about all the things you think you need to get done tonight and go on one date!” Emma whined, her frustration evident. 

“Emma, it’s the beginning of the year, I can’t.” Regina reiterated. “I have prior knowledge to assess, lessons to plan, a project to create, forms to organize…”

“All of which can be done just as easily tomorrow, when you’ve had a good night’s sleep,” Emma replied confidently. “Aren’t you tired from working with the kids all day?”

Regina sighed as she got into her black Ford Fusion and started driving, putting the call on speakerphone so that she could safely drive but still talk to Emma. Her sister knew her too well - she  _ did _ get her best work done first thing in the morning, and she  _ was _ tired from a long day at work. One of her most difficult students, Neal, had decided to pick a fight with a fellow student in the middle of her classroom that day, so she had needed to put an end to the argument before it escalated, and had lost the remainder of the class period in the process. And as she was filling out the necesary report for the incident during her lunch, Grace had come in to ask for her advice about a crush she had on a fellow student, one who wasn’t in any of Regina’s classes. Add to that the administrative responsibilities that came with the beginning of the school year and Regina knew that the last thing she needed was a distraction, particularly of the romantic variety. But she couldn’t deny that she needed just one hour of not thinking about the stressors in her life before she faced them again. “Fine. But only one hour, and you and August have to be there. Being with a complete stranger is going to be difficult enough without having to attempt to converse with him.”

“That’s the whole point, Regina, to ask him questions so that you get to know him,” Emma informed her, and from her tone, Regina could practically see her eyes rolling. “But fine. If you would prefer that August and I are there, we’ll be there. See you at-”

But Regina never heard what time she was supposed to meet Emma, August, and her blind date. A sudden crash on the hood of her car startled her as her airbag deployed. Something hard hit her forcefully on the head, and Regina knew no more.

 

********

 

Robin struggled to shrug on his coat as he answered his phone before he walked out the door. “Yes sir?”

“Locksley, we need you. The law firm on Main Street just caught fire, and a burning beam fell into the road, which of course was full of rush hour traffic.” Keith Nott, his boss, barked in his ear.

Robin looked heavenward, then knelt to hug his son Roland goodbye (a task made more difficult by the action figures he was clutching in his tiny hands) before gently ushering him toward his babysitter, Ashley. He had warned August that he wouldn’t be able to go on the blind date that he had set him up on, that being on call for work meant that it was likely that he would need to leave early. Now it seemed that he wouldn’t be able to attend the date at all. “Any casualties or injuries?” Robin asked. It was always the first thing he wanted to know when going to the scene of a fire.

“You’ll find out when you get here! Move it! Now!” Nott barked. 

“Yes boss, on my way,” Robin told him. Nott had a way of treating the paramedics that worked at the fire station as if they were inferior to him for the sole reason that he was the chief. Although in reality this wasn’t the case, as Robin had worked at the station for the same length of time. He just lacked the ambition to climb the corporate ladder that Nott seemed to possess in spades. 

He climbed into his car and sent August a quick text:  _ Got called in, sorry to cancel, but you know how Nott is. Apologize to Emma and my date for me.  _ He had told his friend about work enough that he knew that August wouldn’t question his need to report to work. As a writer, Robin had always known that August was very open-minded, and although he had never met his wife, Emma, from what his friend had told him, she was the exact opposite. She was the type of woman who saw the world in black and white, and Robin hoped that his inability to show up for the date that the pair had arranged wouldn’t put him on her bad side.

He didn’t know why his friend was so insistent that he date in the first place. He was a single father and a paramedic, he didn’t have the time needed to devote to the type of relationship that any woman deserved. 

When he pulled up to the scene, he glanced down at his phone, where August had just texted him back:  _ Don’t worry about it, go. Be a hero.  _

Robin chuckled. Roland always saw him as a hero too, often comparing him to his favorite Marvel and DC characters. While the sentiment warmed his heart, he just did what he needed to do. While some may see his actions as heroic, it was all in a day’s work for Robin. He loved helping others in any way he could, a trait he had always possessed.

Once he had gotten out of his car and jogged up to where other paramedics were grouped, he asked John, his coworker and closest friend, “What do we need?”

“I think we have the building covered. But that beam needs to be removed and any passengers and the driver extracted and their needs tended to,” John told him, pointing to where a black Ford Fusion lay under a beam that was the length of the building.

Robin rushed over, thankful for the protective layers of his suit as he lifted the burning beam as quickly as he could. The front of the car had been completely destroyed, making it easy for Robin to see through the rubble.

When he saw the driver of the vehicle, his breath caught in his throat. She was easily the most beautiful woman he had seen since his wife, Marian, passed away two years previously. Her dark curly hair framed her face, which was bruised from the collision, and fell to just above her shoulders, and Robin was thankful for her petite frame as he carefully lifted her from the rubble.

He carried her over to his team, where it was rapidly determined that the force of the collision had put the woman, who they had identified as Regina Mills after finding her wallet in the wreckage, in a coma. 

Robin helped his team transport Regina to the hospital, where she was put under the care of Doctor Whale. As he drove home hours later, Robin couldn’t get the haunting image of Regina’s beautiful face out of his mind’s eye. He knew that her family had been contacted and hadn’t been reached, but due to the lateness of the hour, they likely had their phones silenced as they slept and would be frantically checking in on her in the morning. 

While so many things were uncertain about Regina’s case, Robin knew one thing for sure: this wasn’t the last time he’d be seeing her. As often as he could- when he was at the hospital for work and when he was off-duty- he would be visiting her for as long as she was at the hospital.

 

********

 

It had been three months since Robin had helped transport a comatose Regina to the hospital. True to the promise he had made himself that night, he had visited her as often as he could, and by looking at her charts had deduced that she was faring no better than when she first came to be under Doctor Whale’s care. 

He had often visited her due to his proximity to the hospital, but now it was likely that he would get to check on her condition less because they were moving to a larger apartment that was further from the hospital. They were lucky they had found it, as the director of the complex told them that the previous owner had been in an accident a few months before, and while her family had kept up the lease for as long as they could, they simply couldn’t afford to keep the apartment on top of the medical expenses the previous tenant needed. 

When he entered the apartment, Robin had instructed Roland to play with his toys while he moved their belongings inside. 

When he came in, arms laden with the next load, Robin heard his son talking to someone. 

“Who are you talking to?” he asked, poking his head into the room.

“Papa! This is my new friend! You didn’t say this was her apartment too!” Roland said excitedly, pointing to the empty air beside him.

“Roland,” Robin said slowly. “I’m afraid you’re mistaken, my boy. There’s no one next to you.”

Roland whipped his head to the side. “But she was just here! Papa, you scared her away!”

Robin had to bite his tongue to avoid saying something he would regret. His son was only four, and Robin wanted him to believe in magic and happy endings for as long as possible. He believed that kids grew up far too quickly in this day and age, and he did not want his son to follow in their footsteps. Maybe this was Roland’s imaginary friend. While he had never had one before, there was a first time for everything. “I’m sorry, Roland,” he apologized. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you and your friend… what’s her name again?”

Roland frowned. “I asked, just like you always tell me to, but she doesn’t know, Papa. How can someone not know their name?”

_ If they’re imaginary _ , Robin thought. Aloud he told his son, “Sometimes people forget things, even things as important as their name. It’s a sickness called amnesia. Maybe your friend has that.”

His logic seemed to make sense to his son, who nodded. “Yeah! Ameesha, maybe that’s it!”

Robin chuckled. “Amnesia, son. Why don’t you come down for dinner? If she shows up again, your friend can join us.”

Roland nodded, and everything seemed normal. The little boy’s friend didn’t make an appearance- or at least, none that he mentioned as he chatted animatedly about everything he liked about their new apartment and all of the adventures he planned to have there.

As Robin was washing the dishes, he heard a female voice behind him scold incredulously, “That’s not where pots go. And what did you do with all of my things?” 

Robin turned and was taken aback to find the vision of a woman he hadn’t expected to see.

It was Regina MIlls. The woman he had rescued from her car months before and had visited as often as he could since. After months of admiring each of her features, he finally discovered that her eyes were a brown that glowed like honey, which he immediately found himself gazing into, unable to look away.

“Wh-what are you doing in my kitchen, Regina?” he stuttered.  

“Regina? Who’s Regina?” she snapped. “And I believe you are mistaken. This is  _ my  _ kitchen. And I don’t let anyone cook in my kitchen under any circumstances, so get out!”

“How do you know that this is your kitchen, and yet you don’t remember your name?” Robin wondered aloud. 

“That isn’t important,” she retorted. “What’s important is that you’re breaking and entering in my kitchen-”

“Papa? Who are you talking to?” Roland’s voice interrupted her before Robin could.

Both adults turned, and Robin saw a gentle smile on Regina’s face that he hadn’t expected as his son entered the room.

“You’re back!” Roland said, rushing over to the woman and giving her a hug. Robin saw her return the hug warmly, a soft smile on her face that he hadn’t expected. Surely, someone who was so particular about where everything was placed in her kitchen wouldn’t want the affection of a child who was often messy. Whether it was his bedroom floor or his fingers after a baking or painting adventure, Roland was often asked to clean up a mess he had made.

But apparently, Regina loved children. the mesmerizing vision before him proved him otherwise as Roland excitedly tugged Regina’s hand with fingers that were still sticky from dinner, leading her to the next room so she could “watch movies with us! We’ve never had any girls watch movies with us, Papa!”

Robin’s heart lurched at his son’s words as he followed his son and their guest. He knew that there was not even the slightest possibility that his son would remember watching movies with his mother, but those nights had still happened, followed by Marian reading her son a bedtime story before tucking him in and kissing him on the forehead. They were some of Robin’s most treasured memories.

Regina seemed to read the expression on his face. Kneeling before his son, she asked him softly, “Didn’t your mama ever watch movies with you, Roland?”

Roland cocked his head to the side, then nodded slowly. “I guess she did. I know she did, because Papa tells me about what she used to do all the time. But she went to be with Jesus and the angels when I was a baby, so I don’t remember that.”

“Then I’m not the only girl who’s ever watched movies with you and your papa- but I might be the first girl who’s done this!” she exclaimed as she reached out to tickle the little boy.

Roland squealed and ran before Regina could touch him. She chased after him, yelling, “I’ll get you!”

Laughing, Robin set out a couple movies for them to choose from before returning to the kitchen to fix a bowl of popcorn.

When he reentered the room, he found Roland curled up next to Regina. She tried to wrap her arm around him, but as he watched, he saw her arm go right through his son.

“Gina! That tickles!” Roland squealed. “I already won the tickle fight, you can’t tickle me, we can’t start another one, we have to watch the movie!”

As they settled in to watch  _ Robin Hood _ , Robin pondered the incident. Was it really possible that the ghost (spirit, soul, whatever she was) of the woman he had saved months before was sitting in his living room watching movies with him and his son?

There was only one way to find out, he just needed the time necessary to solve this mystery.

 

********

 

For two weeks, their interactions continued in much the same way. While there were moments when Regina irritated Robin incessantly (especially in regards to parenting Roland-  _ he  _ was his father, thank you very much, he didn’t need input from a woman who had known his son for a matter of days), at the same time, Regina fascinated Robin. The way she could be a spitfire, challenging him about the way he did everything, but then be the loving mother figure that Roland had been lacking for the last two years of his life in the next second left Robin captivated by her.

He never stopped calling her by her real name, a fact that seemed to annoy her constantly. Finally, one day she burst out, “If you’re so certain I’m this Regina person you keep talking about, why haven’t you told me or shown me how you know I’m her?”

That outburst stopped Robin in his tracks, bowls in hand ready to be washed after a scrumptious meal of broccoli cheddar soup. While he had been busy beyond belief between caring for Roland and his job, she did have a point. “It’s not that I haven’t wanted to, it’s that it’s much easier to show you so you’ll believe me. How about this- I’ll show you tomorrow?” he offered. He had a day off, so he could take her to the hospital while Roland was at school.

She huffed. “Why can’t it be today?”

“Well, because we can’t go where we need to go right now because they’re closed to visitors,” he informed her.

She sighed, resignation in her tone when she answered, “Fine.”

 

********

 

Thankfully, Robin had the next day off, so Roni (she had given herself the name when she hadn’t been sure that the name Robin told her was the right one) insisted that he prove her identity to her. The day started with feeding Roland breakfast and taking him to school, which was a lengthy process due to Roni’s need to ensure that everything from how Robin cooked Roland’s scrambled eggs to how he dressed him for the cold weather outside was done correctly. She appeared suddenly throughout the morning with comments like, “Doesn’t he have a hat and a warmer coat?! He’ll freeze in this weather without them!”

She could see the conflict in his eyes. On the one hand, he likely hated that she was trying to come and parent his son for him. He had been successfully doing the job for four years, after all, two of which had been entirely on his own, a fact she admired. His adorable, sweet son was proof of his success as a parent.

On the other hand, despite how frustrating it may be to him, did she dare to think that he perceived her care for his son as endearing as well? She had only known him for a handful of days, and already Roland had inextricably wormed his way into her heart. She doubted she would ever be able to forget him. 

That was the goal for the day: to help Roni regain her memory, and to figure out what had happened to her for her spirit to be in her apartment instead of her body. She also wanted to find out if they could fix it- after all, she didn’t want to be a spirit forever.

Later, when Robin got home from taking Roland to school, he explained his plan to Roni. “You say you know who I am, but how do you know? Have we met before?” she asked, skeptical about his plan.

A wide grin spread across his face. “I doubt I’d ever forget meeting you,’ he assured her. 

She let out a snort of derision, but followed him wordlessly to his car.

When they arrived at the door of the room where her body had been residing for the past few months, she came to a sudden realization that caused her to whirl around to face him. “Are you some kind of stalker or something? Just how often have you been visiting me here, and why on earth would you do such a thing?!?” She couldn’t believe that all this time, he had known exactly who she was because of some creepy habit he must have of visiting unconscious people in hospitals.

He reached out, and to her surprise, unlike Roland, he was able to touch her. She decided to ponder this ability later as he seized the opportunity to clasp her hands in his. He started rubbing circles over the back of her hands before she could pull away. Although she was furious with him, she had to admit that the motion was soothing her. How was she supposed to hold on to her anger toward him if he continued doing things like this? The motion relaxed her, more than she cared to admit. It was enough for her to stop fighting him as he began to explain. “I’m a paramedic with the fire department, and I was called to the scene of your accident. There had been a fire at the law firm on Main Street, and one of the burning beams from the building fell on your car, and the collision put you in this coma. I’ve been periodically checking on you ever since.”

Well. While she still didn’t like that he had possibly brought his son to this place (the sad atmosphere that surrounded hospitals was no environment for a child who didn’t have to be there), she had to admit that that was kind of sweet. She had never met anyone who would not only help save her life, but check on her almost lifeless body for months afterward. “You-” she began, not certain what she was going to say next. 

Luckily, she didn’t have to decide, for at that moment, voices filled the hallway right outside of where they were discussing a past that Regina still had no memories of.

“Mommy! Is Aunt Gina going to be able to hear me talking to her?”

A long pause. Then a female voice answered softly, “I know she will, kid. Your aunt loves you very much,” her voice clearly suppressing sobs that it was difficult to keep back.

Out of the corner of her eye, Regina saw her companion glance around frantically for a place to hide, but there was nowhere. He would have to just come up with an explanation for his presence on the spot.

They entered the hospital room then, a tall woman with blonde curls- if this was someone related to her, Regina thought, those curls were the only feature that marked them as being related. But then her gaze fell on the young boy tucked under his mother’s arm who had inherited her green eyes and had short chestnut hair, and her breath caught in her throat.

_ Henry. _

In that moment, her memories came flooding back, overwhelming her with their intensity. If she had had any doubts as to her identity after looking at her own comatose body laying on a stiff hospital bed, they were gone now. She remembered everything: her work, growing up with Emma, holding Henry for the first time, and the argument about the blind date that had never happened. 

Looking at her nephew, her heart ached to see his little face so sad. He was only seven years old, he shouldn’t have to visit his aunt in the hospital. No child his age should.

 “Henry?” she whispered, her hand reaching out to the child before her.

The sound of his name diverted the young boy’s attention from where it had been focused on the body lying on the bed. “Aunt Gina!” he exclaimed, running over to her   

Henry reached out to her as she reached out to him, but unlike what had occurred with Robin moments before, she was unable to touch him. It devastated Regina that she was unable to comfort the boy that she had always called her little prince, and glancing over at Robin, she could tell that he wanted to hold her to console her. Instead, he held out his hand, giving her the option of holding it, which she was grateful for. She liked to think of herself as an independent woman, but it was still nice to know that when almost no one could see her, someone was still by her side. Whether she would take the offer or not still remained to be seen.

Henry’s outburst had alerted Emma to Robin’s presence when she looked up and followed the focal point of her son’s attention. “Who are you, and what are you doing here?” she asked sharply. Regina contemplated how it was unusual that unlike her son, her sister was unable to see her. From the lopsided smile Robin gave her, she could tell that he knew at least some of her thoughts, and understood the feelings behind them.

“Emma,” she whispered, her voice held back by the lump in her throat. How was it that the stranger who had apparently helped save her and his son could see her, but her sister, her own flesh and blood, couldn’t?

She could tell Robin’s thoughts were racing, coming up with an explanation for his presence before Emma could throw him out of the hospital room. “I know Regina through work.” His eyes found her for a brief second, and with a shrug she indicated that was as good an excuse as any. It was the truth, after all, even if it wasn’t in the way her sister would expect.

“Oh, so you teach at her school!” Emma replied, nodding. “I’ve always wondered: is it really as much work as she’s always claiming it is? My sister tends to exaggerate things when she wants to avoid doing something.”

Regina was taken aback. Like Robin, Emma had a son. Between that and her own accounts of her day-to-day life, surely Emma knew how much work teachers put in to effectively teach their charges? 

“Of course it is,” Robin replied adamantly. “Teaching is one of the most important occupations a person can have, no matter how challenging it may be. Children are our future- surely as a mother you can understand that.”

“I do,” Emma replied hurriedly. “I just want her to learn how to take a minute to breathe, that’s all.”

Robin nodded slowly. “I can understand that.”

It was too much. For one thing, what right did Robin have to an opinion on the subject? He was a paramedic, not a teacher, he had  _ no idea _ what she went through on a daily basis. And her sister… Regina just wanted to scream, but almost no one would hear her. And of the two people who would, she didn’t want to alarm Henry, so she settled with an indignant, “Will you two stop talking about me as if I’m not here?” Turning to Robin, she continued, “Emma may not be able to see me, but you can, and I’d hope that knowing that, you’d be a little more kind.”

He smiled apologetically in lieu of replying verbally, likely to avoid raising suspicion. After all, for some unknown reason, Emma couldn’t see her. She turned away from them, focusing her attention on Henry while Emma and Robin talked. She listened to her conversation though, in case she needed to intervene again.

“It’s just, I want her to enjoy life, you know? No kids, no husband or boyfriend, not even a dog. It has to be lonely, even after working with kids all day.”

“I understand. You’re looking out for her, and just want her to be happy, which is admirable. But did you ever ask what she wanted? Maybe she’s happy with her life the way it is. And I can say from experience that some jobs are more taxing than they look, but the rewards are well worth the extra effort.”

There it was!  _ That  _ was what she had trying to convey to her sister for years. In that moment, she was so grateful that she had found someone who, although he had a completely different line of work, understood the value of that work that when he next glanced her way, Regina sent him a grateful smile over Emma’s shoulder as she snorted. “I’d maybe believe that if she ever did anything that didn’t involve your school. Although I’ll never forgive myself…” she trailed off, looking down at her sister’s stationary body. “The night she got in the accident, she had just been on the phone with me arguing about going on a blind date that my husband and I had set up for her. I can’t help thinking that maybe if she hadn’t been thinking about how much she didn’t want to go on the date, she wouldn’t’ve gotten in the accident. She would’ve swerved in time, or put on the brakes, or…  _ something _ . Anything but what happened.”

Regina silently cursed whatever being had decided that her sister wasn’t allowed to see or feel her. While she still thought her points were valid, in that moment she wanted nothing more than to forget their argument about her apparent lack of a social life and wrap her sister in her arms, telling her everything was going to be okay. 

It was as if Robin read her mind when he replied, “Well, speaking from experience, I can tell you that being set up is fun for neither person involved. But as for your sister’s accident being your fault, it wasn’t. Don’t ever think that it was. That beam would’ve come down regardless of whether Regina was preoccupied or not. It was just bad timing.”

Emma sniffed and hastily brushed away the tear that was leaving a trail that led down her cheek. “Thank you. That means a lot.”

“All right, enough of that, we can’t have you blaming yourself for this any longer,” Regina interrupted them, coming over with Henry before Robin could utter a word in reply. “Don’t you have somewhere to be, Emma?”

As if she could hear her sister’s words, Emma looked down at Henry and seemed to free herself from any melancholy thoughts she was harboring. “All right, Henry, it’s time to go. Say goodbye to your aunt.”

Henry went over to gently pat her arm that was lying above the covers on the bed, then ran over to hug her, his attempts thwarted by whatever cruel laws of nature decided that he couldn’t touch her. “Bye Aunt Gina, I’ll see you soon!” he exclaimed, his joy at seeing her again written all over his face.

“Ma’am, if you could wait just one moment,” a male voice interrupted them.

Regina turned to face the doctor who had likely been caring for her during her stay in the hospital and groaned. Of course, it just had to be Doctor Whale. She had tried to obtain his assistance when she was teaching her students nutrition vocabulary in her Spanish I classes, and he had fallen through, leaving her to fend for herself with a lesson that she could barely understand in English, let alone teach her students in Spanish. The memory made her blood boil. No wonder she had been in a coma for three months instead of on the road to recovery- with a doctor who was known for not following through, she didn’t have the best chance of survival.

The last of her thoughts was confirmed when Whale told her sister, “I’m sorry to be the bearer of this difficult news, Mrs. Booth, but I’m afraid that we have to discontinue giving your sister life support. I regret to inform you that it’s hospital policy that we let patients go after three months, and unfortunately, we have hit that three month mark. We just need your signature allowing us to proceed with the process.”

She saw Robin’s eyes widen at the sound of Emma’s married name, but was kept from asking him what significance the name held for him when she saw that Emma’s eyes filled with tears, and she held Henry close. “Can- can I think about it for a few days?” she begged. “This is a lot to drop on a person so suddenly, I need time before I can do that.”

Whale nodded. “Of course. Seeing as it’s Friday, you can have the weekend to think about it, then inform us of your decision on Monday.”

Emma nodded. “Thank you.”

As the blonde exited the room with Henry in tow, Regina ran after them, trying desperately to grab her sister’s clothing to stop her. “Emma, I’m right here, don’t let them do this. I’ll do anything you want, let you have that black dress you’ve always wanted, cook your meals for a year, anything. Just don’t let them do this.”  

“Mommy, they can’t take Aunt Gina away!” Henry informed his mother, echoing her words. “She’s right here!”

Emma stopped and knelt beside her son, unshed tears making her voice unsteady. “Henry, sometimes grown-ups have to make really hard decisions. And I’d love to believe that Aunt Regina is here, but I don’t have the heart of the truest believer like you do. So it’s a little harder for me, okay?”

Regina’s heart ached at the sound of one of their many nicknames for Henry over the years. He believed in fairy tales, in the power of good overcoming evil, so fervently that they had started telling him that he had the heart of the truest believer. Even when he was older, she was sure that there would be a part of Henry that would always believe that there is goodness in the world, despite evidence to the contrary that appeared in the news on a daily basis.

Henry nodded. With one last backward glance at Regina, he followed his mother out of the hospital just as Robin caught up to her.

“What can I do? How do we stop this?” he asked breathlessly.

“First thing’s first: we figure out why I”m still here,” she declared. “Then, we figure out how to reunite me with my body.”

Robin nodded. “Sounds like a plan. Where do we start?”

 

********

 

Regina’s only real plan was to go to people who claimed they could see and talk to the dead, and see if they had any solutions. But the people they met during the rest of that night and into the next day were a disgrace to their chosen profession. (Not that Regina saw it as a profession.) She never thought she’d see the day when she would be going to psychics for help, of all people.

Despite their claims that they were able to see spirits, not a single one of the people they met that afternoon and the next day could see her. One, who had been a priest, even uselessly wasted water trying to exorcise her! Although she supposed that in a way, his belief in her existence was a small step in the right direction. Apart from Robin, Henry, and Roland, no one was able to see her, and while she supposed that their belief in all things magical was the underlying reason behind the boys seeing her, she was at a loss as to why Robin was able to not only see her but touch her, which no one else seemed able to do.

Finally, they went to the last woman on their list. She called herself Tinkerbell, and Regina scoffed at the name, but Robin’s belief almost matched Henry’s when he insisted that they go, that it was their last chance to find a solution to their dilemma. 

When she first saw the woman that had named herself after the Disney fairy, Regina immediately understood why. She had blonde hair in a bun, and wore green. Between those factors and her petite figure, she closely resembled the pixie who had given Peter Pan and the Darlings the ability to fly.

Her eyes grew to the size of saucers when they walked into her shop. By that gesture alone, Regina hoped that if she couldn’t see her, she could at least sense her. Maybe Robin had been right when he had insisted they visit her after all.

She greeted them with a smile. “How can I help you?”

“Well, I-” Robin began. Regina groaned in frustration. She thought that for as many times as he had explained their predicament to the countless people they had seen, he would be able to do it with more ease each time, but clearly that wasn’t the case.

“Let me guess,” the woman who called herself Tinkerbell mused, propping her chin up on one elbow, “You’ve fallen in love with a ghost, and now you want to know how you can be with her. I can sense her presence, and the chemistry between you two is undeniable.”

“No!” Robin denied immediately, a blush creeping over his face from his forehead to the stubble on his cheeks that likely was mirrored on Regina’s features, if the heat suddenly overwhelming her was any indication. “What makes you think that? I just want to help her get back into her body, back to her life. That’s all.”

He told her their story, including the details regarding who could see and touch her and who couldn’t, with Tink nodding throughout. When he was done, she shrugged. “It’s obvious, isn’t it?”

“What is?” Robin inquired, clearly as desperate to know the solution to their problem as she was. That fact alone made Regina’s heart flutter traitorously. How had she stumbled upon a man who was so kind that he seemed to want to reunite her with her family as much as she did?

“You’re soulmates,” Tink informed them. 

Their cries of derision that were uttered in unison did nothing to dissuade her. “You are! Robin, that’s the only explanation for it! It’s why you’re the only adult who can see her. She stayed in the coma, separating from her body so that you two could meet.”

“Fine. Assuming you’re right, what do we do now? What does the slight possibility of her being my soulmate have to do with putting her back in her body where she belongs?” Robin asked, clearly determined to get to the answer to their question as soon as possible.

“Isn’t it obvious? The solution is a variation of true love’s kiss. Robin, your soul is what’s keeping hers alive. When you kiss her, the connection between you will be a tangible thing, solidifying your connection so that she can return to her body.”

“So that’s it? All I have to do is kiss her?” Robin asked, sounding astonished. For a fleeting second, Regina wondered if he would have kissed her sooner, had he known that. 

She shook her head. That was ridiculous. There was no possible chance that Robin would have kissed her because even though he could touch her, she was a ghost. No one could kiss her, and even if they could, no one would want to. It had been years since her high school sweetheart, Daniel, had kissed her until they were both breathless outside of the stables her family had owned before her mother insisted they move to the city once she was in college.

Judging by his last question, Robin seemed just as bewildered as she. There was something in his eyes, though, that suggested that maybe Tink’s proposition wasn’t such a ludicrous one after all.

“Yeah- just kiss her, and she should return to life as it was before her accident,” Tink told them. “And when it works and you two get married, I expect to be invited to the wedding.”

“I- I- we’ll see about that,” Robin stuttered, seeming as flabbergasted as she was by Tink’s boldness.

They thanked her and left, the bell on the door ringing as it shut behind them.

 

********

 

They left Tink’s shop, each lost in thought. Finally, Regina broke the silence. “While she was definitely the most legitimate out of all of them, she was still a bit out there, wasn’t she?” 

“Yeah,” Robin mused, not meeting her gaze. He had gotten so caught up in the day-to-day aspects of his life- caring for Roland, work, and the like- that he hadn’t noticed that he had been slowly starting to fall for Regina in the weeks he had known her. He wouldn’t call his feelings towards her love, not yet. After all, they had only known each other for less than a month. But there was something about her (several things, now that he thought about it) that captivated him. The sparkle in her eyes when she had interacted with Henry the day before. The ferocity with which she stood up for what she thought was the right thing, whether that was a specific parenting technique or her body living another day. 

Did he want to kiss her? Yes. But that didn’t mean that his kiss would be well-received, or that it would return her to her body. 

“So what do you want to do tomorrow?” he asked. “We can do anything you want, Anything at all.”

She pulled her coat more tightly around her. “I think I have an idea.”

The first part of Regina’s idea was for them to have a picnic on the roof, which they could access through the main stairwell.

“I always wanted to plant an apple orchard up here,” she confessed to Robin as they watched Roland play. “Or even just one apple tree. But it never happened, lesson planning kept me on my toes, and before I knew it, each spring would pass by without me planting a single seed.”

“I understand that, though,” Robin confided. “If it wasn’t for Roland, it would be so easy for me to just go through the motions and let life pass me by. Before I realize what’s happening, I’ll be old, fat, and ugly, and Roland will have a full-time job, so I won’t know what to do with myself.”

She laughed, then fell silent. “You could never be ugly,” she admitted quietly, avoiding his gaze when he looked over at her.

The twinkle in his eyes only served to prove her point as he asked, “Oh? Do you think we should try Tink’s theory then?”

“No, of course not!” she protested, cheeks flaming. “In fact, I know it could never work.”

“Why’s that?” he asked, and she suddenly noticed just how close he had gotten. She could feel his exhaled breath as it mixed with her own, their knees were touching, and all she had to do to close the gap between them would be to lean forward a scant few inches. 

And his little boy was very, very far away.

“Because I don’t believe it will,” she whispered, and she felt his knuckles graze her cheek. “Happy endings… tend to not work out for me.”

“Well, maybe it’s all about timing,” he suggested.

She shook her head, standing up. “No, I really don’t think so. And you can’t convince me otherwise.” 

With that comment, she stood and asked Roland if he wanted to bake cookies. With an excited “YES!!”, they went back into the apartment and started to bake.

Two hours and several cups of flour and chocolate chips later (much of which landed on their clothes and in their mouths, respectively), they collapsed in front of the TV to watch one of Roland’s Disney movies. After the credits started to roll, Regina asked if she could be the one to tuck him in. Never one to deny her anything, especially the night before the day when the question of her existence would hang in the balance, Robin agreed. 

When she rejoined him on the couch, he slung an arm across the back of the sofa where she was sitting. “So. Not to be morbid, but what’s one thing you want to do before you die? Not that I think you will tomorrow, I just want a record of it so that I make sure it happens.”

“I’m already practically dead, aren’t I?” she asked. 

“The fact that I can do this,” Robin murmurred, his fingers tangled in her hair as he stroked it, “when no one else can suggests otherwise.”

“Freak accident,” Regina claimed.

“Or perhaps the power of soulmates, if we’re to believe Tink,” Robin reminded her.

She shook her head. “You have too much hope for your own good.”

“So use mine for the both of us,” he suggested. “Seriously though, what would you do if tonight was your last night?”

She gazed into his eyes, chocolate drowning in the ocean, before she let out in a voice scarcely louder than a breath, “Do you really want to know?”

“Of course,” he whispered back.

“I- there was a boy I loved, back in high school, my only boyfriend. We only slept together once, but I miss that. The intimacy of course, but more than that- I miss the feeling from that night and the following morning. The feeling of falling asleep in someone’s arms and knowing that for that length of time, I was safe.”

She couldn’t read his expression. Then suddenly, he stood and held out his hand. “Come on.”

“Where are we going? Robin, what are you doing?” she asked him, her brows furrowing in suspicion.

“Giving you that feeling of protection. I don’t think it’ll be for the last time- you have a long life ahead of you. But it’s better to be safe than sorry, right? And don’t worry, I won’t take advantage of you. You have my word.”

She nodded slowly, and followed him to his room, which he had insisted for the last two weeks was hers. 

Ten minutes later, she was in his bed with her back to him. His arm draped across her, and she sighed with contentment. She had been right. This feeling of security, even if it was from someone she had met not all that long ago, had been worth the embarrassment of asking for it. 

She listened to the sound of his breathing, matching hers to his, and fell asleep.

 

********

 

The next morning, Robin had work at seven in the morning. He was loath to wake Regina, but the blaring sound of his alarm spared no one. 

She turned toward him as she stirred, and he reached out a hand to tuck a wayward strand of her hair behind her ear. “How’d you sleep?”

“Wonderfully,” she sighed, voice still groggy from sleep.

He stroked her cheek. It was an impulse, one he hadn’t realized he possessed. But from the moment he first touched her, it was like he couldn’t stop. He was drawn to her in a way he couldn’t possibly explain. Well, there was Tink’s explanation, one that he was slowly starting to believe. But Regina didn’t, and he had a feeling that the power of a soulmate’s kiss wouldn’t work without the belief of both of them.

Once he had gotten to work after dropping Roland at his friend Will’s to get on the bus for school, he couldn’t stop thinking about Regina. When they received a call that, after the fire had been extinguished, led them to the hospital, he decided to find her as soon as he could, knowing that his uniform would get him into places that were inaccessible to the public.

Finally, after more papers were signed than he liked to think about, he seized his chance. He made his way down to her room, spotting Emma once he got there.

“What are you doing here?” she asked. “And why are you in a firefighter’s uniform?” A pause. Then: “Wait. Are you August’s friend Robin that I was going to set Regina up with?”

“What?” he asked, stunned. “August is your husband?” He had suspected as much upon hearing her last name, but didn’t want to ask in case he was wrong. While he and August were good friends, they had been closest in college, which was long before August met Emma.

“Of course,” she dismissed with a wave of her hand. “He has been for years now.”

“Never mind that,” he insisted with an urgency that he felt in every cell of his being. “Where’s Regina?”

“They’ve taken her back for the procedure on the other side of this floor. She’s probably long gone by now.”

“ _ No _ ,” Robin breathed. He spun on his heel, Emma calling after him.

When he got to the room where Regina lay, he found body and soul in disarray. Regina was crying as the doctors removed tubes that were vital to her body’s survival, and he rushed to console her.

“But Robin, look what’s happening,” she sobbed. And she was right. Her spectral form was flickering in and out of existence, growing fainter the more the doctors worked on her body.

“Out of my way!” Robin yelled, pushing through the doctors surrounding the table. Amidst their shouts, he gazed down at Regina’s body, which he knew from the monitors above her was losing more oxygen by the minute. 

“Robin, as much as I want to believe you can help, there’s nothing you can do,” Regina whispered, her voice the only remaining sign that her soul was connected to his as he gazed down at her, his hand on her cheek. 

Instead of taking the time to answer her, he let his actions answer for him. He leaned forward, her lips now only an inch from his, and kissed her.

For a long moment, there was silence. The only thing Robin knew was Regina’s lips on his, which were unresponsive and cold. 

Then he heard the machine that communicated that her heart rate had started to beep again, and he released her, hoping that she would draw breath. 

To his relief, she did. But whether Regina’s body and soul had reconnected remained to be seen. It was possible that her body had regenerated from the kiss, but her soul didn’t remember the events of the last two weeks.

Then she breathed his name, and all was right in Robin’s world. He swept her up in his arms, trying to be mindful of the fact that her body was frail from malnourishment, and kissed her again, rejoicing when she kissed him back with equal passion.

“Sir?” Whale asked. Robin hadn’t even noticed his presence before that moment. “While I’m grateful that you saved Miss Mills’ life, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to step aside so that we can perform some tests on her to ensure that she is indeed all right again.”

Regina gripped his uniform with a strength that belied her size. “No. He stays.”

And Robin would stay. For as long as she wanted him, he would willingly be her anchor, and looked forward to where the future would lead them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this, and as always, let me know what you think!!


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